📅 Looking Ahead to 2027
We are delighted to confirm that the Sligo Chess & Culture Festival 2027 will take place from Friday, January 29th to Sunday, February 7th, 2027.
Please save the dates in your calendar—we look forward to building on this year’s success with an even richer programme of tournaments, culture, and community. Further details, early-bird entries, and accommodation offers will be announced later this year.
📝 Festival Questionnaire
To help us continue improving the festival experience, we would really appreciate your feedback.
The questionnaire takes only a few minutes to complete:
👉 https://forms.gle/yvpKk7HkTBfSDpLH7
Your thoughts and suggestions will play a direct role in shaping next year’s festival.
🌍 The Players
This year we were delighted to welcome 354 registrations across four tournaments, representing 27 national federations.
Participants ranged from unrated players enjoying their first over-the-board event to Austrian GM Felix Blohberger. We hosted primary and secondary school competitions, welcomed a visit from Ireland AM, and truly experienced a festival that was local, regional, national, and international in spirit.
Federations represented included:
Austria • Belgium • Bolivia • Canada • Czech Republic • England • France • Germany • India • Ireland • Italy • Jersey • Macedonia • Netherlands • Norway • Pakistan • Poland • Portugal • Scotland • Serbia • South Africa • South Korea • Spain • Switzerland • Ukraine • United States • Wales
🏆 Prize Winners
Weekender Master
1st – CM Jacob Flynn
2nd – FM Shane Melaugh
3rd – Yannick Woods
Weekender Expert
1st – Advaith Nichenamella
2nd – Ben McIlory
3rd – Lorcan Heron
Weekender Championship
1st – Lysander Schwab
2nd – Paul O’Flaherty
3rd – Angel Mariya Boby
Weekender Major
1st – Niall P. Whelan
2nd – James Godson O’Doherty
3rd – Nicu Boldijar
Weekender Challenger
1st – Artem Blokh
2nd – Alan Patterson
3rd – Ronan Zalatel
Weekender Women
1st – Alice O’Gorman
2nd – WCM Jasmina Gajcin
3rd – Nicole White
Blitz Open
1st – IM Alexander Krastev
2nd – IM Andre Rakhmangulov
3rd – FM Gustavo Ribeiro
Blitz Women
1st – WCM Alexandra Prado
2nd – Svitlana Kelbas
3rd – Alexandra Koukalov
Rapid Open
1st – IM Alexander Krastev
2nd – IM Mark Quinn
3rd – Christopher Woods
Rapid Women
1st – WCM Alexandra Prado
2nd – Maria Sobol
3rd – Alexandra Koukalova
9-Round Open
1st – GM Felix Blohberger
2nd – FM Adam Collins
3rd – IM Alexander Krastev
9-Round Women
1st – WCM Alexandra Prado
2nd – Jagoda Bienko
3rd – WCM Lynda Smith
Full results:
https://s3.chess-results.com/tnr1241839.aspx?lan=1&art=0&fed=AUT&SNode=S0
♟ Live Games & PGNs
All broadcast games are available on Chess.com and Lichess, where PGN files can also be downloaded:
• Chess.com – https://www.chess.com/events/info/sligo-chess-culture-festival-2026
• Lichess – https://lichess.org/broadcast/sligo-chess–culture-festival-2026-open-open/round-7/UkvzOk1k#boards
🎥 Streams & Content Creators
Festival coverage can be found at:
• WCM Diana Mirza (Twitch) – https://www.twitch.tv/dianamirza
• WCM Alexandra Prado (Twitch) – https://www.twitch.tv/alexandrachess
• GM Felix Blohberger (YouTube) – https://www.youtube.com/@febloh
• Zach Saine – ChessNerd (YouTube) – https://www.youtube.com/@thechessnerd
• Vladimir Mabhena (YouTube) – https://www.youtube.com/@Knightf6
Special thanks to Vladimir Mabhena for filming the talks by Adrian Kelly and IM Mark Quinn.
📸 Professional Photography
Photos from all events are available to view and download. There should be a photograph of every player:
• Weekender – https://condohphotography.pixieset.com/sligochessandculturalfestival2026/
• Blitz – https://condohphotography.pixieset.com/sligochessfestivalsat7thfebmorning/
• 9-Round Open (Sat) – https://condohphotography.pixieset.com/sligochessfestivalsat7thfebevening/
• Rapid – https://condohphotography.pixieset.com/sligochessfestivalsun8thfebmorning/
• Open Awards – https://condohphotography.pixieset.com/sligochessfestivalsun8thfebeveningawards/
🙏 Thank You
The festival would not have been possible without the extraordinary efforts of so many people. Heartfelt thanks to:
Chief Arbiter IA Alon Shulman; FA Colm O’Muireagain; NA James Forde; NA Kieran Barry; the Irish Chess Union and ICU Chairperson Desmond Beatty; Deputy Festival Director Sandra Woods; Ola Piechorowska; WICF Advocate Brid Graham; Gráinne Roche; Neil Smith; Alpona Dutta; Sheila McDermott; Smart Board Specialists Frank Pentony & Sean Cummins; WFM Diana Mirza & Jonathan O’Connor; IM Mark Quinn; Adrian Kelly; Oksana Hushpit; Alfonso Alvarez Jimenez; photographer Conor Doherty; and everyone who volunteered, assisted, or supported in any way.
Thank you also to our sponsors: Beyond, Chess.ie, Chess Track, CBE Software, Liber Bookshop, Dmac Media, Dunnes Stores, Northwest Credit Union, Sligo County Council, Visit Sligo, EisnerAmper, Chess.com, Sligo LEADER, and our many board sponsors.
If anyone has been inadvertently omitted, please know that your contribution was valued and appreciated.
Stay Connected
Please follow the festival’s social media channels for news and updates about 2027.
If you have not played in the festival before, you can register for the email list at https://sligochessfestival.com/subscribe-to-email-list/.